Mom charged after kids left in hot car in Mount Airy

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MOUNT AIRY, N.C. -- A woman was arrested Sunday in Mount Airy after being accused of leaving her children inside of a vehicle on a hot day.

According to a news release from the Mount Airy Police Department, officers responded to the River Hill Apartments at 1248 Newsome St. around 11:15 a.m. after receiving a call from concerned residents regarding two unattended children.

Officers arrived to find that the children -- ages 2 and 3 -- had been left unsupervised in a vehicle for "a long period of time," police said.

Police said the concerned residents removed the children from the vehicle before the officers arrived.

Officers located the mother of the children -- identified as Joanna Nichole Jones -- inside one of the apartments, police said.

Shortly afterward, police said Jones was charged with one count each of felony child abuse and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was jailed under a $50,000 secured bond.

No other details were provided, but police said the Department of Social Services was contacted to assist in the investigation.

Temperatures in Mount Airy on Sunday reached a high of about 93 degrees.